Legal Department

The Legal Department provides legal guidance and assistance to all branches of City government to facilitate the smooth and legal operation of the City.

Department Description

The City's legal department is the legal advisor to the City Commission, to various City boards, committees and to the City administration and departments. The City Attorney's Office is committed to providing professional, quality legal services that ultimately protect the interests of the City of Alamogordo, its departments, the City Commission, and the citizens of the community. We provide a full range of dedicated, in-house legal services intended to ensure the legality of legislation, contracts, and programs, as well as ethically and competently defending legal actions filed against the City and its employees. The City Attorney's Office does not represent private citizens in private legal matters involving the City or otherwise. The City Legal Department function includes:

Providing day-to-day legal advice and counseling to the City Commission, the City Manager, administrative staff, boards, and committees and the various departments, divisions and staff of the City of Alamogordo

Prosecuting all municipal ordinance violations

Representing the City of Alamogordo in all courts, as well as in administrative hearings, meetings and other proceedings

Researching relevant law and preparing information necessary for City Commission review

Developing administrative material necessary to implement policy decisions of the City Commission

Preparing and reviewing all legal documents and contracts related to the City of Alamogordo for compliance with the City's Purchasing Ordinance, state law and federal law

Providing full legal support to City departments having responsibility for collection of debts owed to the City, such as water accounts, weed abatements, code enforcement, special assessments, rents for City owned property and library charges

Preparing and monitoring liens and release of liens when requested by the DPS Code Enforcement Division and the Accounts Receivable Department

Assisting with water rights acquisitions, preparing and monitoring protests to applications for water wells filed both by the City and by outside parties

Coordinating claims and proceedings with the New Mexico Self Insurer's Fund

Promptly and efficiently handling all inquiries and complaints from the general public either by phone, email, written correspondence or in person in regards to the City of Alamogordo's ordinances, policies and procedures